Even though Microsoft won't say if it plans to end its 12-year practice of providing security patches on the same day each month to everyone, security experts have concluded that Patch Tuesday isn't going anywhere.

There's no guarantee that Apple will stop supporting Mountain Lion with security fixes: Apple, unlike Microsoft and other major software vendors, refuses to spell out its support policies. Instead, it leaves users guessing about when their Macs' operating systems fall off the support list.

Microsoft last week served up two updates to Windows 10 devices running the July 15 preview build, highlighting how much of a black box such updates may be to users who upgrade to the new operating system.

In a revival tent-like speech Wednesday, Microsoft COO Kevin Turner urged the company's partners to forget the past -- an allusion to the failure of its smartphone business to gain meaningful share -- and defended the decision to keep making handsets.

Microsoft will continue to make smartphones for its Windows 10 Mobile operating system, but the company has thrown in the towel on the devices strategy pursued by its former CEO and will probably give up entirely unless Windows 10 reverses years of missteps.

Despite rumors that Microsoft is about to kill Windows Phone, some industry observers say that's unlikely for several reasons, especially the expected gains from the rollout of Windows 10, which will run on smartphones and other devices.

Microsoft's Keystone Kops-like revelation that Windows 10 testers would get a free copy of the OS may be confusing compared to Apple's approach with OS X, but it reflects the complicated ecosystem Microsoft maintains.

Cybersecurity firm Fortinet's purchase last week of wireless network manufacturer Meru Networks for $44 million is the second major acquisition of a Wi-Fi hardware vendor in three months – and, potentially, the start of a broader pattern.